Senior Data Architect in Kent

We have a new opportunity for a technical Senior Data Architect to join our Data team. As a leading UK life and pensions mutual insurer with a proud history dating back to 1843, we exist to help people live financially confident lives – protecting their income while they work and maximising it when they stop. Today, over one million members and customers trust us to look after their futures, families and finances. Joining us means becoming part of a team that puts our members, customers and advisers at the heart of everything we do. We’re committed to creating an inclusive culture where colleagues can thrive.

You will play a critical role in shaping and influencing the modernisation of LV’s data landscape. An opportunity to design and build a governed, cloud-native data platform within a well-known UK financial services brand, shaping the future of data across Finance, Actuarial, Digital and Operations. This role is offered on a permanent basis with a requirement for regular presence in our Bournemouth office.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the re‑architecture of the enterprise Single Customer View (SCV), addressing inconsistent implementations and establishing a trusted customer model.
• Lead the data architecture design to rationalise and modernise legacy data assets, establishing a data foundation on Microsoft Fabric.
• Own and produce high level data architecture designs and work closely with data engineers to shape and assure sprint level designs.
• Design enterprise/domain-level data models and information architecture as a Cloud Data Platform SME.
• Collaborate with business domains to translate business concepts into data models and platform solutions.
• Provide data architecture assurance at programme or project level.
• Define and assure data standards, ensuring data is consistent, reusable, high‑quality and well‑governed.
• Architect master/reference data strategies and oversee metadata management in collaboration with the Data Governance Lead.
• Data solution design for change projects, contributing to project planning, impact assessments, and estimates.
• Create logical and physical data models, APIs, and integration patterns.
• Ensure adherence to data standards, design principles, and best practices.
• Maintain technical debt register if identified and drive resolution to agreed standards.
• Provide governance oversight across the projects involving data.
• Collaborate with DG Lead supporting projects on data governance, lineage, and stewardship.
• Ensure adherence to enterprise data architecture principles, data standards, and governance frameworks, maintaining alignment with all regulatory and compliance requirements.
• Drive architectural reviews and present solutions to Data Design Authority and other Governance Boards for approval.
• Ensure adherence with Information Security design patterns and principles.

About You

• Extensive experience designing end‑to‑end cloud data solutions, with Azure as the primary platform.
• Strong hands‑on architectural experience with Azure Data Lake / Lakehouse patterns, Azure SQL, and Azure Storage.
• Proven ability to define high level design and work closely with engineering teams to shape implementation designs.
• Solid understanding of data integration, analytics, BI, and modern data platform patterns.
• Experience working with Power BI and data governance / metadata platforms (e.g. Purview or equivalent).
• Strong grounding in data modelling, with experience using modelling tools to produce deployable models.
• Practical understanding of data governance, lineage, data quality, and stewardship.

Desirable

• Previous experience of working in the insurance/financial services sector.
• Experience working with MS Fabric, Databricks or equivalent.

Rewards and Benefits:

This role is a Band C in the LV= Structure. At LV= Savings and Retirement, you’ll go above and beyond to do the right thing for our customers. We’ll reward your hard work with an attractive, competitive salary and benefits package, which includes:

• 30 days' holiday, with the option to buy up to 5 additional days.
• Competitive pension scheme - LV= Life and Pensions will double-match the amount you pay, up to 14% (subject to National Minimum Wage requirements).
• An annual bonus scheme based on personal performance.
• Single-cover private medical insurance (with the option for you to upgrade to family cover).
• Flexible benefits, including a cycle to work scheme, personal accident insurance, critical illness cover and dental insurance.
• Up to 20% discount on our life products for you and your immediate family.
• A group life assurance policy with 4 x your basic pay to go to your dependents (you’ll have the option to increase to 8 x cover).
• Group Income Protection (if you become a member of the Pension scheme and reach 5 years of service).
• Access to our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for support when you need it.
• A virtual GP service.
• Shared parental leave.
• Up to 20% discount on our life products for you and your immediate family.

Please note all salary sacrifice benefits are subject to National Minimum Wage requirements i.e. you are unable to select any benefits that would reduce your base pay below the minimum wage threshold. Please note that we are unable to offer Skilled Worker Visa Sponsorship for this role. Therefore, you must ensure that you are eligible to work in the UK without our sponsorship for your application to be considered.

We’re proud of our inclusive culture at LV= and, as an equal-opportunity employer, we continually work to remove unconscious bias from our recruitment process. We value our colleagues for what they bring to our team regardless of any protected status or characteristics they may have. Talk to us about flexible working as part of your application; if it’s right for you, our members and customers, and our business, then we’ll do everything we can to make it happen.